Adjustable gang condenser



Augo 12 1941 w, L L" E 2,252,193

ADJUSTABLE GANG CONDENSER Filed June 22, 1939 "Ewe! IJ'IIIIIIIIII/ INVENTOR W/L HELMUS LAMBERTUSg/MDUS V/VIE ATTORNEY tuning.

subject to variations of different value.

Patented Aug. 12, 1941 ADJUSTABLE GANG CONDENSER Wilhelmus Lambertus Leonardus Vivie, Eindhoven, Netherlands, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Radio Corporation of America, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application June 22, 1939, Serial No. 280,515 In Germany July 25, 1938 2 Claims.

This invention relates to an adjustable gang condenser system, particularly a ganged slidingelectrod condenser, of which use may be made, for example, in a wireless set with single-knob It has been found that th equalization of a Banged-condenser system, all the stationary or all the movable electrodes of which are supported by at least two carriers extending substantially parallel with the condenser shaft and fixed or journalled in a rigid structural part, for example in a casing wall, is disturbed in some cases due to the fact that the capacities of the individual condensers of the ganged-condenser system are The latter fact is particularly harmful in that the various oscillatory circuits of which the condensers form part are detuned with respect to each other so that equalization of the oscillatory circuits is impaired.

The present invention has for its object to reduce or neutralize the mutual detuning occurring in the above-mentioned construction of ganged-condenser systems. The invention is based on recognition of the fact that the detunings are due to temperature fluctuations.

According to the invention, the rigid structural parts in which the two carriers are fixed or journalled and the electrode parts supported upon the carriers are made of materials having the same or substantially the same coefficients of expansion.

In a ganged sliding-electrode condenser system whose helical electrodes ar provided with a bottom plate and in which the bottom plates of the stationary electrodes are secured to at least two carriers arranged so as to be symmetrically with respect to the condenser shaft and preferably made of ceramic material, said carriers being fixed at least at one end in a casing wall which is substantially normal to the condenser shaft, the bottom plates of. the stationary electrodes and the said casing wall or walls are made of materials having the same coefficients of expansion, preferably of the same metal.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into efiect it will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. l is a longitudinal section of a ganged slidlug-electrode condenser.

Fig, 2 is a cross-sectional view of the said condenser, identical parts being designated in both figures by like reference numerals.

In the embodiments illustrated, each of the iii condenserelectrodes, l, 2 6 is constituted by a helical armature secured respectively to a bottom plate H, I! IS. The slidable electrodes 2, 4 and 6 are secured to a slidable shaft I journalled in centeringsleeves soldered to the bottom plates ll, 13 and I5 ofthe stationary electrodes I, 3 and 5. The driving means for the slidable shaft I is not shown on the figures since it isno feature of the present invention. The

bottom plates H, 13 and i5 of the stationary ends to the walls l1 and I8 respectively which form part of the casing l0 and are arranged normally to the condenser shaft;

If, as has hitherto been the standard practice,

the bottom plates of the electrodes are made of copper or brass and the casing including the casing walls l1 and I8 is made of sheet iron, the mutual equalization of th condensers will only be correct, if the room temperature of the condenser is in exact agreement with the temperature at which the condenser was equalized after its manufacture. For other temperatures there is mutual detuning of the capacity of the individual condensers. The reason for the abovementioned detuning is found inthe following.

As is seen from Fig. 1, the carriers 8 and 9 are interconnected at a plurality of points, that is to say by the two casing walls I! and I8 at the points A, A and B, B and by the bottom plates ll, l3 and 15 of the stationary electrodes l, 3 and 5 at the points C, C, D, D and E, E. It may now be assumed that the condenser was equalized after manufacture at a room temperature of e. g. 20 C, and that at this temperature the carriers are exactly parallel throughout their length. If the room temperature increases to 30 C. (a temperature which frequently occurs in a wireless set when in use) and if the coefficient of expansion of the bottom plates ll, l3 1 free expansion by the carriers, the bottom plates have also exerted on them forces bringing about a change in form or the bottom plates and the armatures. The mutual detuning of the condensers is due to the fact that the various bottom plates l3 and iii are subject to distor tional forces of different strength. As may be derived from Fig. l, the bottom plate ii is very close to the ends, secured to th casing wall ll, of the carriers 8 and Q and this bottom plate is consequently submitted to distorticnal forces in a greater degree than the other bottom plates. Apart from the above, it is clearly evident that the bottom plates l l and it are not distorted in the same manner. In the construction illustrated, it has been found from actual experience that the centre of the bottom plate ii is displaced to the right as a result of distortion and will, for example, bring about an increase in capacity, whereas the centre of the bottom plate 55 is subjected to a displacement to the left with the result of a decrease in capacity of the condenser concerned.

The mutual detuning oi the condensers is therefore clue to the different coeficlents oi er;- pansion of the bottom plates ll, it and lb, of the stationary electrodes i, 3 and i3 and of the casing walls ii and i8.

If in particular the air-gap between the oppositely arranged armatures is smaller than 0.5 mm., for example 0.2 mm., and the thickness of the armatures is small, for example 0.1 mm., the distortion brings about inadmissibly great detunings even for difierence in temperatures of 5 C.

According to the invention, the said defects are obviated due to the fact that the bottom plates of the stationary electrodes ll, l3 and iii and the casing walls, ll and I8 to which the carriers 8 and 8 are secured, are made of materials having identical coeflicients of expansion, for example of the same metal. This avoids the occurrence of the distortion described since all the parts extending between the carriers are subject to the same expansion so that the reason for the production oi distortional forces is removed.

' The use of the invention is also advantageous when the carriers are secured to a casing wall or another structural part at only one end.

I claim:

1. in a gang condenser oi the slldable electrode type, a housing having a pair of end plates, a pair of cross rods extending between said end plate; and rigidly an'iried thereto, a slidable control shaft disposed in parallel relation to the cross rods and having aillxed thereto in spaced relation a plurality of movable condenser electrodes, a plurality of stationary condenser electrodes, each cooperating with one of the movable electrodes and having a base plate rigidly attached to said cross rods, the spacing between the base plate of one end electrode and the housing plate at that end being closer than the spacing between the base plate of the opposite end electrode and the housing plate at end, by reason of which on account of temperature changes several base plates are sub jected to unequal warchic causing misalignment oi the electrodes carried thereby with respect to their cooperating movable electrodes, said base plates of. the stationary electrodes and the bolls-- ing end plates being of material having subetan tially the same coeficlent oi expansion whereby capacity variations between the several of the gang condenser due to temperature changes are avoided.

2. In a gang condenser of the slidable electrode type, a housing having a pair of metallic end plates, a pair of cross rods of ceramic material extending between said end plates and rigidly affixed thereto, a slidable control shaft of ceramic material disposed in parallel relation to the cross rods and having affixed thereto in spaced relation a plurality of movable condenser electrodes, a plurality of stationary condenser electrodes each cooperating with one or the movable electrodes and having a metallic base plate rigidly attached to said supporting rods, the spacing between the base plate or one end electrode and the housing plate at that end being closer than the spacing between the base plate of the opposite end electrode and the housing plate at that end, by reason of which on account of temperature changes the several base plates are subjected to unequal warping causing misalignment of the electrodes carried thereby with respect to their cooperatmg movable electrodes, said base plates of the stationary electrodes and the housing end plates being disposed in parallel relation and made of material havizg substantially the same coefllcient oi expansion whereby irrespective oi temperature changes the cross bars and control shaft are maintained in parallelism thus preventing the stationary electrodes from being deionised and giving rise to capacity variations between the several units of the gang condenser.

HJIELMUS MEIERTUF;

LEQNALEDUEE' vrv 

